The USS Gerald R. Ford (CVN-78) reached a historic milestone on Wednesday, April 15. After leaving Naval Station Norfolk on June 24, 2025, the carrier hit 295 days deployed, setting the longest post-Vietnam aircraft carrier deployment in modern U.S. Navy service, according to USNI News data. That means that by the time the Ford-class aircraft carrier comes into port in Norfolk, Virginia, it will have been on deployment for almost a year.
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The U.S. Air Force and Northrop Grumman this week released the first official image of the B-21 Raider conducting aerial refueling with a KC-135 Stratotanker – a major milestone that indicates the program is moving beyond early flight testing. Aerial refueling is an important test point, proving that the bomber can operate globally and sustain long-duration missions. Northrop itself described the milestone as extending the aircraft’s global reach and enabling longer, more efficient sorties.
Veterans’ advocates are pressing to allow judges and courts to consider a veteran’s military service when giving a “second look” to excessively long prison sentences. So-called second look reductions of long prison sentences are now allowed in federal courts and 25 states, but veterans groups say Congress needs to ensure that those reviews take military service into account.
For two days in a row, Army leaders have been questioned by lawmakers about why Gen. Randy George, the service’s former chief of staff, was forced to retire earlier this month.
CBS News first reported on April 2 that Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth had asked George to step down as the service’s top officer. A Defense Department official confirmed the CBS report to Task & Purpose.
Australia has released its 2026 National Defence Strategy (NDS) and Integrated Investment Programme (IIP) today, 16 April.
Estonia has opted to reallocate defence funding away from IFV procurement, with analysis indicating investment into counter-drone technology.
Boeing has secured a £879m ($1.1bn) Rotary Wing Enterprise (RWE) contract from the UK Ministry of Defence (MoD) to provide long-term maintenance and support services for the UK’s Apache and Chinook helicopters.
The Australian Army has conducted a live-fire demonstration of the first Australian-made Guided Multiple Launch Rocket System missiles.
It was supposed to be a routine flight, nothing out of the ordinary.
The SA-16 Albatross was scheduled to leave Mountain Home Air Force Base in Idaho on January 24, 1952, and fly approximately 700 miles before returning. The Air Force plane never made it back, crashing into a mountain in Death Valley, California.
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Thankfully, the six airmen onboard, including a former World War II pilot, parachuted out of the aircraft’s back door before the moment of impact.
Should a vessel attempt to run the U.S. military’s current blockade of Iranian ports, Navy sailors are authorized to fire warning shots if necessary, said Air Force Gen. Dan Caine, Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff.
“Any ship that would cross the blockade would result in our sailors executing pre-planned tactics designed to bring the force to that ship — if need be, board the ship and take her over,” Caine said during a Thursday Pentagon news briefing. “And that includes a series of escalated force options, which could include warning shots and others.”
Since the U.S.